cup of joe

The other day as I passed by a local recycle center I read these three words that encourage us all to go green. Reuse, reduce and recycle. These words remind us about how to eliminate our plastics, our newspapers and glass. But they were a subtle reminder to me of just how much God wants to keep me in the game so that I don't get stuck at life's red lights and I can continue to go green.                    No matter what you and I have been through or how we've been hurt, we are able to be used by God for some amazing things. He wants to use us to touch the world with His love and to bring some joy and hope to those that are hopeless. You can be reused! The way you do that starts by being humble...to reduce yourself as you increase Him. Humility always precedes honor. In other words when you can allow His agenda to be more important than yours, He can begin to take you places you never imagined! And remember this, you just keep on learning, keep on moving and keep on growi…

I John 1:3We saw it, we heard it, and now we're telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.4 Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!
Did you know as a believer in Jesus  that you have a responsibility to spread the Good News? When you begin your spiritual journey you should want to tell others about what you see God doing in your life and what you hear the voice of the spirit tell you. We share with others because we want them to experience the same joy that we do. If you are having a season where joy is diminishing, share more!
When you pass it on, you double your joy! Get your own double portion today!

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Phil 1:3
Paul was addressing the church folk at Phillippi and letting them know that not only did he think about them, but every time that he did, it prompted him to be thankful for them. Years ago there was a song sung by The Baby's which had the line, "every time I think of you, it always turns out good". Out of the mouth of "Baby's" come such encouraging words!
God is thinking about you right now. He cared so much about your path that He planned it out before you were born so that you could enjoy it to its fullest. He never stops caring about you and no matter what you are in the middle of right now, He desires the absolute best outcome for you. He's thinking about you! Let that cause you to be thankful today. Every time He thinks of you, it always turns out good!

Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations you do not know will come running to you, because of the lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor."
IS 55:5
How much of each day do you spend trying to make things happen? Maybe you go out of your way to try and manufacture circumstances and get things to line up just right. Moving people, working relationships and scheduling meetings of influence can drive you crazy!
Take a moment and read the scripture out of Isaiah again slowly. It reminds you that good things will come to those who do good things. YOU are endowed with splendor!! You glow...you shine...you have God's favor all over you!
So stop trying to make things happen and let God send things running in your direction. Get ready to receive the best that could possibly happen. Gods hand is upon you!

As I added a comment on my Facebook page the other day, a little ad caught my eye on the right side of the page. It's what the advertisers want me to see. It simply said, "someone searched for you".
It made me smile and then I just lifted up my head and said "thank you Jesus for finding me!" As the song says, "I once was lost but now i'm found".
The Lord has always been searching for me...since He set things in motion for my arrival on the planet. It was the most incredible "search and rescue" ever. He found me in the midst of my own selfishness and dysfunction and brought me to a place where I would acknowledge Him as my Lord and begin to live my life for Him. The most amazing and fulfilling relationship I have ever had has been with Jesus. Someone searched for me and everything changed. Guess what? He's searching for you too!

Psalm 63:2So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open, drinking in your strength and glory.3 In your generous love I am really living at last! My lips brim praises like fountains.4 I bless you every time I take a breath; My arms wave like banners of praise to you.
5I eat my fill of prime rib and gravy; I smack my lips. It's time to shout praises!
Sometimes when I read the Word of God, I simply have no other words to add. These few verses from the Message version have captured the way I like to rise up and face the day! Eyes wide open, drinking in His strength and glory, lips brimming  and arms waving with praise, and eating my fill of prime rib and gravy!! 
I smack my lips and it's time to shout PRAISES!

2 Timothy 3:1 Don't be naive. There are difficult times ahead.2 As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse,3 dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical,4 treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God.
Paul warns Timothy in this chapter to take a good look at what is happening and not to be naive. I always wondered if the French thought we were simple people who would buy anything when they bottled water and called it EVIAN which is actually "naive" backwards! We need to pay attention to life.
Times are changing. People are getting more self-absorbed. When you start relying on your Facebook friendships over real, up close and personal ones, watch out! Notice the progression of all of these terrible characteristics in these verses. and they all culminate with the person being allergic to God!
Benedryl won'…

I'm tired of all this-so tired. My bed has been floating forty days and nights On the flood of my tears. My mattress is soaked, soggy with tears.7 The sockets of my eyes are black holes; nearly blind, I squint and grope.
Get out of here, you Devil's crew: at last God has heard my sobs. My requests have all been granted, my prayers are answered. psalm 6:6-9
I love reading the Psalms when I feel a bit overwhelmed and detached. Perhaps it is because David is so transparent and genuine in what he is feeling and when I see what he went through emotionally and spiritually, I gain a bit of confidence for myself.
I have had moments when everything was caving in on all sides but I also know what it feels like to see all of my prayers answered and my requests granted. Life is good, if you embrace what God is up to. Challenges can bring out the best in you if you can allow patience to have her perfect work.
Today, do what David did and tell the Devil's crew to beat it! And let a psalm …

As part of the new series "It's a New Day" at our church we have been looking at all that comes in being a new creation in Christ Jesus. Old things are gone and new things have come. One of those new items is found in Ezekiel 36:26 where it tells us of God's desire to give us a new heart. The heart has its own rhythm and agenda before we surrender it to Him. Your heart is not naturally tilted in the direction of God. It beats to a different drummer until you are “born again”.  Once you have received Christ as your Lord and Savior he givesyou a new heart. The heart of stone becomes a heart of flesh...pliable…manageable…shape-able. When you ask Jesus to be Lord you are asking Him to come and live in your heart and to rule and reign in your life and He cannot move into a defiled, wicked heart.So he gives you a new one. And it is out of this new heart that springs hope, faith and love. Now this incredible new heart is able to be filled with amazing new things from God…de…

It's Fathers Day weekend! As a father of three I am thrilled that I get a day to say,"it's about me!" Fathers Day is just like Mothers Day only we don't spend as much:)
For all of the men that have stood up for the right things, lived a life of serving God and caring for their family, I salute you and honor you on your special weekend.
About 5 years ago, I sat down and penned a song for my father and had the chance to sing it during a church service that year. The idea is that the love of our father never ceases, its the same now as it was then as a child. So too is the love of our heavenly Father for us. That's some great news!
So dad, take a few minutes this weekend for YOU and let the loving arms of Christ embrace you.

I dedicate this little song to all the dads...Happy Fathers Day!

Now as Much as Then

Isaiah 57:1The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart;
the devout are taken away, and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil.
2 Those who walk uprightly enter into peace;
they find rest as they lie in death. 
The righteous perish? Say what? There are many things that we won't know until we see Jesus face to face. Like why some people are taken away from us earlier than we expected. As I prepare to do a funeral service today I thought about this verse that the Lord showed me many years ago when a person I knew very well passed away giving birth to her first child. I was stunned by the suddenness and the timing. I was able to find some comfort in the fact that she might have been taken early because of something troubling in her future. It may sound silly to you but whatever strategy you need to face things you do not understand ought to be embraced. I was able to move on as she entered that peace.
God holds the BIG picture and we only g…

Cast your cares on the Lord
and he will sustain you;
he will never let
the righteous be shaken. PS 55:21
To cast our cares on the Lord literally means to hurl them in his direction. The reason many people are suffering from overwhelming disappointment is that they have not yet learned how to throw. They say that misery loves company and many of us choose to keep all of the negativity around us because we like being in the middle of the attention, even if it is damaging. 
God wants to sustain you. To hold you up and to keep you growing through the difficult seasons. Not only will he sustain you, he will de-stain you too! He will remove the stains of the past and the hurts that others have brought your way and clean you up...whiter than snow!
Today, gather up all of those concerns, troubles and difficulties and when I count to 3, hurl them up to God. ready? 1...2....throw!

4My heart is in anguish within me;
the terrors of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling have beset me;
horror has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 I would flee far away
and stay in the desert;
8 I would hurry to my place of shelter,
far from the tempest and storm.” Psalm 55
Many times when I read the psalms I have this feeling that David and I would have been great friends. We seem to connect on many levels and share so many emotions. I am certain that you too have had troubles and difficulties that made you wish you had wings so that you could just fly out of the drama, away from the storm and land in a place of safety.
You and I don't have wings because we were not designed to fly away but to try and stay. That's right, to plant your feet firm in His Word, to proclaim His promises and to expect the mountains to move and the enemies to leave.
The only truly safe shelter is to be "in Christ". …

I once read a quote that said, "the atmosphere you permit determines the product you create." I have been looking for a place to live for the last few weeks. As I move through the different homes it is very clear that each environment has a  certain feel. Some of the homes feel dark and filled with anxiety and pressure while others are light, open and filled with an incredible peace. Guess which one I am drawn too?
I understand more now than I did that you can create an environment where you live by the behavior that takes place there. Words and actions will change the climate of a home and an office. What kind of space do you live in? Is the atmosphere you are creating allowing you to be the best that you can be? Dedicate your office, your home, even your car to the Lord and ask God to bless all that happens there. You will be surprised by all that God can do in the right atmosphere!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone and the new has come!” There are so many people today, so overwhelmed by things, mortgages, relationships, businesses, etc. that the idea of new can seem a bit unreachable. Say something positive today: say out loud "it's a brand new day!" So many folks have already adopted the idea that mediocrity and “used” is just the way it is and they settle for that as "good enough". Let's not dwell on good enough let's look to a God that is MORE than enough! A big market for consumers in this economy is engaged through items that are “refurbished or reconditioned”. The first thing we must realize is that when Christ makes you new, it is not the same as being refurbished(i.e. to restore something to good condition:usable) or reconditioned. You are not simply “repaired”. When Jesus comes to live in us, when we ask Him to be our Lord, we are “born again”. Spiritually speaking it is as if the lif…

"He, who every morning plans the
transactions of the day, and follows that
plan carries a thread that will guide him
through a labyrinth of the most busy life"
- Victor Hugo
The best way to get a whole lot of things done is to simply start with one thing. You can't win if you don't begin! Start each day with a plan and then one thing by one thing, make it happen. You need a goal.
So many of us tend to get a bit overwhelmed by the magnitude of what lies in front of us that we give up before we get into it. Don't let that happen to you. Maybe you can only take baby steps at first. That's ok. Just keep on steppin! Before you know it you will be running and then jumping through things you never imagined you could do. Let today be the fresh start to the best part of the rest of your life!

Happiness...ahh, everyone is in search of it. It was Abe Lincoln that said, "most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." Fact is, true happiness depends on you. I want to give you three quick ways to get back on the happy train and start living in the joy that God intended you to have.
1- Act like what you desire to see happen is happening. When you were a child you probably used to play make-believe when you were alone or when you wanted to put yourself in another place. You became the person that you wanted to be. Some of you may actually be doing the things you acted out as a child. Before I became the founding pastor of The Landing, I prepared teachings and studied out ideas that I thought could help people. I committed to use my skill set for any size group of folks that God placed in my path. I acted as if I was already the preacher of a church that had not yet been founded! Another form of this comes in visualizing the end result that you expect…

Pulling Courage out…let’s counter the four causes with four remedies that can help us be strong and courageous.
Rest: combat fatigue with rest…something that calms you. The most spiritual thing you can do when you’re tired is rest. Jesus said, come to me if you are weary and I will give you rest. Rest is not always an end to activity but often and exchange of activities. Exchange the things that weary you with some things that will refresh you.
Reorganize: combat the frustration of being overwhelmed by putting things in order…first thing first…one thing at a time. Discouragement doesn’t necessarily mean you are doing the wrong thing…maybe you are doing the right thing the wrong way. Try another approach…shake things up a bit. Start little,one space at a time, one pile on the desk…but keep going!
Remember: you take the punch out of fear by remembering God and how he has shown up for others in the past and you too. When you remember him, he covers you with His love…perfect love and the bi…

The disease of discouragement show up in our lives as depression. How can we pull courage out of discouragement? Today, let's suggest some ways it gains access to our lives.


Fatigue: when you are tired and drained emotionally, you are a sure target for the infection known as discouragement. During fatigue your immune system is weakened, your defenses are low and things always look a lot worse than they are. You see this when you get half way through a major project and lose steam. When you feel fatigue, you’ll lose the intrigue.
Frustration: there is no worse thing than seeing tasks pile up and having that overwhelmed feeling. It’s natural to feel this way. When trivial things show up and interrupt you and prevent you from accomplishing what you really need to do, your frustration can easily produce discouragement. When there’s frustration, there’s no elation.
  Fear: think about this one…fear of criticism(what will they think?) fear of responsibility(what if I cant handle it?) these…

It's funny how we become so attached to things in our lives. Our neighborhood is having a garage sale this weekend and as I looked over the inventory that is my collection of "things", I began to recall the history that comes with most of them. As I rummaged about I also found so many items that had no story, served no purpose and even surprised me that they were still in my garage. Boxes that I have moved from place to place without ever opening and utilizing the stuff inside. I decided that it was time to set some of my "things" free and the memories that they harbored. Time to let go.

I have felt in my heart and in my spirit that this month has a theme and the theme is "it's a new day!" All things are becoming new, in me and around me! In order to make way for the new I have to learn the art of letting go of the old. For me the process begins with a simple garage sale! What are you holding on to that needs to be released? Imagine that the incredi…

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matt 11:28-29
When was the last time that you took a daycation? I mean a day that you had for YOU, no agenda that involved anyone else, just some good old fashioned me-time? I think life and it's challenges can be so exhausting sometimes that we feel like shutting down because we think we are tired. The fact is, we may not be tired physically, we may just be exhausted mentally and emotionally. 
When Jesus made this offer in Matthew 11 he was putting people in a place of power, not by giving them sleep but rather by changing their load. Giving Christ your life requires that you allow him to be the planner and scheduler and when you go to him he will make a wonderful exchange: your overwhelming trials and struggles for his. And can I tell you, that will feel like a daycation every day! It's no…

Psalm 6:9 The Lord has heard my supplication;
The Lord will receive my prayer.
There is a huge difference in hearing something and in receiving it. To receive what you have heard it must pass through the ear gate, be processed by the mind, applied to the heart and then turned into action of the body. Application is what gives what has been heard life. 
Read the verse again...the Lord has heard your prayer and he will receive it! That means he will put into motion all that is needed to bring your petition to pass!
Are you looking forward to an answer from the Lord with anticipation? Are you talking as if he has heard and received your request? If not, let your words match what you believe today and get ready for the manifestation of what is necessary.